Star Wars: No Escape
by Master Jorath Oldin
Summary: The Outer Rim Sieges have begun! Mace Windu has a plan to conquer two Separatist worlds, but Count Dooku always have a plan up his own sleeves...
1. Chapter 1

**PROLOGUE**

"_Why would I choose sides? If I choose the Republic, then I have to follow their rules and listen to those Jedi. If I choose the Confederacy they would turn our factories into droid producing labor camps. There is no lesser of two evils."_

-Representative from Manaan on why they remained neutral during the Clone Wars.

"And now I bring you, Surl Nost, Assistant to the Chairman of the InterGalactic Banking Clan." Nacene Mashayekhi, the Twi'lek news reporter said.

It was another long night for Nacene, who was severely underpaid to be doing this type of show. Tonight's show was most likely going to be one of the most conversational shows in Galactic history.

Guests tonight included Separatist and Republic supporters alike and, at least what her boss told her, a Jedi Knight will even show up.

But for now, Surl Nost, member of a large Separatist corporation, will probably get into a huge argument with Harkon Dell, a Republic-friendly Senator from a world Nacene could not even remember.

As she took another swing at the caff that she was drinking, Surl took his turn with the niceties.

"Why thank you, Miss Mashayekhi, you look as wonderful as this evening does, my dear." he said. Surl was, as most of the Banking Clan was, a Muun. With an almost potato-like head, Muuns almost looked like death with their pale pink skin and skinny build. It was obvious that Surl had not looked at the weather forecast tonight for Coruscant as it was raining outside…

"Yeah, okay. Well, Mr. Nost, our other speaker is arriving here shortly, please stand-by." Nacene said. And, sure enough, the next speaker arrived on another screen hanging from the newsroom.

Harkon Dell looked like he just got out of the fresher a few moments ago. His face was still a little bit red from where he shaved at and, Nacene hoped nobody else noticed, he had a little bit of shaving cream right near the tip of his ear.

She almost chuckled and she introduced him.

"Galactic citizens alike, let me present to you, Senator Harkon Dell of the Vondarc System located in the Mid Rim." She read from a card she got from a nearby protocol droid.

Nacene put on a fake smile and said "Well, gentlemen, it seems like we can get started, others will join us, but for now let us start with our first topic: the clone troopers that the Grand Army of the Republic uses."

She could see the smirk begin to grow on Nost's face from the mention of this topic, he had something good (or not good) to say about this topic.

But she let Harkon Dell go first, just to annoy Surl Nost.

"Well, Nacene, let me be the first to applaud the Republic for finding us troops needed to fight off the Separatists so quickly. Without them, we would have lost much, much more than we already have." Harkon seemed laid back, relaxed, he was probably told to shave and use the fresher before the news cast for respect alone as he didn't seem to care what others thought of him or what he said.

"I mean, these lonely troopers are all the stands between the diplomatic Republic and the monstrous Separatists laying in the Outer Rim." Harkon replied, looking at Nost trying not to smile. "Each of these soldiers represent what it means to be a part of the Republic; a Republic, I might add, that has stood for over a thousand generations."

Nost seemed unimpressed, but after a sigh he spoke. "It pains me to see that your faith in the Republic is so blinded, Senator."

Harkon rolled his eyes, he was just going to ignore whatever he said anyway.

Surl continued. "You say that these troopers of yours represents what it means to be a part of the Republic. Does this mean that the Republic has no freedom?" Surl was handed a small cup of caff off camera and drank it slowly to let the statement sink in.

"You know," Surl continued. "your senators complain that the Separatists with their droid army has it so they we have a mindless, controllable army that would never betray us…but…can't you argue the same for your Clones? We build our soldiers out of durasteel and the Republic builds theirs out of flesh and blood."

Harkon yawned for effect to make it seem like the things Surl said didn't ring any truth and counter-argued. "You _could _argue that, but the Clones are not droids. The Clones are not hardwired _machines_," Harkon nearly spit the word machines out. "The Clones are loyal, yes, but are not _programmed _to be loyal. They have a reason to fight and defend the Republic. They are living, breathing _people _who have feelings and instincts. Clones do not have to kill, but droids are programmed to."

Surl nodded and said. "And yet, instead of letting these living, breathing men live, you let them get slaughtered and killed like animals…like…droids." Surl Nost took another swing at caff for effect also.

Before Harkon was able to say what he was thinking, which Nacene was getting the censors ready, a small bleep was heard in the control room…another broadcast was ready to come in.

"Excuse me, gentlemen, but we have another guest coming in live from…Sullust…" Another bleep also came on at the same moment. "And we have another one…from Eriadu, no less." She flipped on two more cameras and now two new faces joined Surl and Harkon.

"Introducing Beolars Bribbs, current President of the Sullustan Council and CEO of SoroSuub Corporation along with Jedi Knight Emus Mo'abos. " Nacene said.

Beolars Bribbs was, of course, a Sullustan. With big ears and even bigger eyes, he spoke a few words in his native Sullustese tongue before Nacene was able to get a droid on him to translate to Galactic Basic or whatever language people were watching at their homes.

Emus Mo'abos was wearing his Jedi cloak, because, people at home either don't believe what Nacene said or don't read the bar that appears under Emus that reads "Jedi Knight."

Beolars spoke first. "Hello, citizens of galaxy. My name Beolars Bribbs."

Nacene muted her microphone and turned to the protocol droid in charge of translation. "Hey, wise-guy, you think you could translate into complete sentences? Your making him sound like a youngling."

The droid nodded and started entering words into the sentences so that they made sense.

"As President of the Sullustan Council and CEO of SoroSuub Corporation, I would like to thank…" Nacene hated it when people repeat what she already said or what is either common knowledge to the galaxy or displayed on the screen while they talked.

"…and Emus Mo'abos for appearing with me." Nacene didn't even pay attention or care who Beolars thanked and, frankly, nobody in the galaxy did.

"Thank you, President Bribbs. Now, Miss Mashayekhi, what were we discussing?" Emus said. A Bothan, his long, grey fur covered his entire face and his pointed ears at the top stood out.

Nacene liked the Bothan Jedi for getting straight to the point, so they can discuss the next topic; as Nacene did not want to continue the Clone discussion any longer.

"Okay, guys, the next question we got here is: Should member states of both Republic and the Confederacy have an army on station at all times? Or should the planet decide?" This question was probably going to start a good old "discussion" but she wanted to see how the Jedi would react.

"We start out with President Bribbs." Nacene declared.

President Bribbs cleared his throat and spoke "We the people of Sullust do not care if the Confederacy have their droid army on our land, because it shows that we are a member of the Confederacy and if we must sacrifice part of our land for the price of a government that will listen to our problems and try to solve them, then so be it."

Harkon's face was one of cold determination. It looked as if Bribbs has insulted his mother. "We all know the reason why the Sullustans joined the Separatists, Bribbs. The Sullustan government is owned by SoroSuub Corporation, which, in turn, is owned by the Separatist-alleged Commerce Guild." Harkon smirked. "You had to join the Confederacy, if you didn't, your whole species would be out of a job."

"I'm sorry, Senator Harkon, but you say that President Bribbs is a bad guy because he wants his species to work?" Surl Nost replied. "I believe the Republic is angry because it's citizens are not as loyal as the Sullustans are."

"Those citizens are bound to the Separatists and are forced to work for them! You Separatists are nothing but credit-stealing power jockeys. Jedi Mo'abos, you must understand what I am talking about." Harkon looked to the Jedi.

The Jedi folded his fingers together and offered his opinion. "I know what it is like to be 'bound' to an organization, Senator. As a member of the Jedi Order, you could say that I was forced to join the order, but I realize now that I could leave at any time I wished, as do the Sullustans, but choose not to."

"You speak words of wisdom, Master Jedi." President Bribbs said.

Senator Harkon jabbed a finger at the camera and replied to both Bribbs and Surl Nost "I love all these jabs at how we use clones and/or have no free will. Say the naive Sullustans, the greedy Gossams and the power-hungry Muun, all of whom get a whiff of credits and fawn over their leaders like good little minions. One leader who is nothing more than a mechanized murderer of worlds, another of whom is a psychotic and deranged warrior from a culture that prizes only infighting and brutality". Senator Harkon was not the calm, prepared man he was when he first appeared. Now, he was a true Republic Senator, believing himself, even as a Mid Rimer to be always correct.

Nacene received the next question from the protocol droid. "Alright guys, we are on a schedule here and this next question asks: What kind of role should the Jedi Knights have in this war."

Of course, everyone let Emus speak first. "Well, the Jedi's role has, and always will be, to defend the Republic. We are keepers of the peace, not soldiers. Although when the Republic is in crisis, the Jedi will became warriors to defend the Republic."

Surl took this in consideration, but didn't buy it. "I think the Jedi are more aggressive than what Jedi Emus is letting on.

The Yinchorri Uprising over ten years ago. The Jedi Council took it upon themselves to end the crisis using aggressive force and without the Senate's approval."

Senator Harkon argued. "Okay, we all know that the Yinchorri had a personal vendetta against the Jedi and that they were a serious threat. Even a Council Member was killed in action."

President Bribbs looked at Emus. "Didn't a Council Member die at Geonosis? Eeth Koth? "

Surl Nost interrupted before Emus could answer. "So the Jedi aren't the invincible warriors we thought they were? Why do the Jedi just rush out into the battlefield but don't try to negotiate with the Separatist leaders? The Jedi are being unnecessarily slaughtered."

"The Jedi have tired to negotiate before, but it seems that your leader Count Dooku, doesn't what to surrender." Emus replied.

"But, Count Dooku is a Jedi, isn't he? It seems odd that he wouldn't want to surrender like, as you say the rest of the Jedi." President Bribbs said, looking at Emus.

Surl looked at Bribbs and said. "That's because the Count quit the Jedi Order because he realized just how corrupt the Republic was. He isn't the only Jedi to turn away from the Republic, is he Emus?"

Emus looked saddened for a moment before continuing on. "Yes, my apprentice, Telo Notka, is still missing in combat." Emus looked at Surl. "But he is not dead and he is still loyal to the Republic."

"Well, guys. I'm afraid we are out of time for tonight." Nacene said. "Master Jedi, my best wishes to you and the Jedi Order for finding your missing apprentice."

Emus straightened up and said. "Thank you, Miss, and if it helps, Telo is a Bith. One of the very few Bith Jedi we have."

President Bribbs' last statement was. "Hard work, persistence, and the cherishing of family is the Sullustan brand identity."

Surl Nost nodded and said. "Always a pleasure, Nacene." And his screen turned dark.

Senator Harkon didn't say anything and turned his camera off.

Before Nacene said the closing credits. President Bribbs said to Emus. "You know, Master Jedi, Sullust's population is one percent Bith. Just wanted you to know."

Emus nodded and said thank you before both screens went dark.

Nacene nodded and said "Well, another interesting show, indeed. HoloNet news would like to thank Ixtren's Inside Scoop and the Coruscant, Here, Now for letting broadcast tonight."

"And we are…clear." Said the man behind the camera.

_Interesting show indeed…_


	2. Chapter 2

**ONE**

"_All warfare is based on deception."_

-Count Dooku

**20 BBY**

CONFERENCE ROOM, GALACTIC REPUBLIC HEADQUARTERS,

ERIADU CITY, ERIADU

"I have a plan," Jedi Master Mace Windu said.

It was a calm, cool day on Eriadu. Though directly next to Separatist territory, the planet had not yet been attacked. Peace reigned. The way things were looking on Eriadu, one would think that there was not even a war going on when eyes gazed upon the beautiful skies and the rolling hills.

Until one looked around.

Clone troopers, by the thousands, marched outside the Republic HQ; emotionless, silent, their armor spotless. The clone troopers that would or _had _sacrificed their lives to protect a thousand years of peace.

Mace Windu had a plan. A plan that would require some of those troopers to risk their lives in order to preserve that peace.

In the beautifully designed room with him were fellow Jedi Masters Luminara Unduli, Saesee Tiin, and Agen Kolar. All three Masters looked to him as a leader, even though Saesee and Agen were also on the Jedi Council. They looked at him as if he were somehow better than them. Like he ranked higher.

Nobody was "ranked" higher than anybody on the Jedi Council, of course, except Master Yoda. Nearly 900 years old, he held more wisdom than the entire Council combined.

Also in the room was Supreme Chancellor Palpatine, and when he looked at Mace, it wasn't as a leader. It almost seemed like Palpatine saw him as a _underling. _Curiosity was in Palpatine's eyes, as if he were thinking that Mace's ideas were foolhardy or even…childish.

Mace activated the holomap in the middle of the conference room, where everyone was standing around. A map of the entire galaxy appeared, and Mace focused in on the Outer Rim Territories, specifically the Seswenna Sector where Eriadu was located.

"You can see here that Eriadu is between two major hyperspace lanes: the Rimma Trade Route and the Hydian Way." Mace pointed with a laser-marker where Eriadu was located, and followed by outlining the two hyperspace lanes.

"The Separatists have two major worlds located here," Mace said, pointing to a spot up a little ways into the Hydian Way. "And one here." He again pointed, but this time down to a planet south in the Rimma Trade Route.

"The one to the north is the Commerce Guild factory-world of Sullust and the one below here is the shipyard world of Sluis Van."

Mace Windu looked at each of the Jedi Masters, who nodded for him to continue.

"I have a plan to capture these two planets simultaneously, using the four of us." He indicated the Jedi Masters around him.

Palpatine looked at him curiously, a small smile formed on his lips. "And how, Master Windu, may I ask will you plan on doing this? Our forces are quite thin already." Palpatine paused, his face looking quite grave. "Unless, you were thinking of sacrificing any of the forces here?"

"That, my friend, will not happen," a voice boomed across the room.

The Governor of Eriadu, Wilhuff Tarkin, whisked into the room. He was adorned with a red and black uniform bearing the Tarkin family insignia, and walked with his hands behind his back in standard military form. "The Jedi would not just simply _abandon _one of it's longest members now would it, Master Windu?"

"Well, Governor, for this plan to work, I'm afraid that some of the task force surrounding Eriadu will need to be used in this operation." Mace knew he was asking a lot for a little, but the war had lasted two years, and they were so close to winning now with the Separatists being pushed to the Outer Rim.

Governor Tarkin's face twisted into a snarl, looking as if Mace had personally betrayed him to the Separatists. "This is an outrage! Supreme Chancellor, you cannot allow him to do this! If we are attacked-"

Palpatine began walking slowly across the chamber, seeming to take in the pictures of famous Eriadu war heroes, including the late Senator Ranulph Tarkin of the Stark Hyperspace War. "Master Windu, if you are really suggesting removing forces from one of our most respected members, I'm sure you have thought this plan out accordingly?"

Saesee Tiin looked at Palpatine and spoke for the first time in the meeting. "Chancellor, I know the risk is great, but you must agree: if we can get two Separatist fortress planets under our control, it will make the war _that _much closer to ending."

"This is inexcusable!" Tarkin yelled. "I demand that this incompetent plan be shelved immediately! I can't have some Jedi with delusions of grandeur risk my planet, my _people, _in some suicide attack!"

Realizing Tarkin would refuse to listen further, Mace turned his attention to Palpatine. The plan could work, _would_ work. It was simply a question of whether or not the Supreme Chancellor would see his reasoning.

Palpatine stopped roaming and looked at Mace. "Let me hear the rest of the plan and than we shall come to a decision."

"It's a simple plan, really. Master Luminara and I will take a task force down the Rimma Trade Route to the Bith world of Clak'dor VII where we will defeat the small fleet in orbit and drop off a couple of Jedi Knights to patrol the area." Luminara nodded her head in agreement. "Afterwards, we fly past Triton and attack Sluis Van with a sizeable task force that should defeat the Separatists stationed there."

"We can take my troops, the 41st Elite, and combine them with your 187th Legion, Master Windu." Luminara said. "It should be more than enough."

"Meanwhile, Masters Tiin and Kolar take a second fleet up the Hydian Way to the planet Agomar where, again, they defeat the small orbiting fleet and head off to Sullust, where they will try to capture the Commerce Guild members alive," Mace explained.

Palpatine stood stoic, as calm as ever. Tarkin, however, continued to rage in silence.

"So, I'm going to use some of Eriadu's forces than, correct?" Agen Kolar said. Agen's forces were nearly gone, and had been tagging alongside Saesee Tiin for the past few months.

"Yes, about a quarter of Eriadu's forces and all of General Tiin's forces would used in your battle," Master Windu said, noticing Tarkin's face continue to grow red. Sweat was even starting to bead on Tarkin's forehead.

"I will need some fresh air before I make my decision. It's a bit stuffy in here." Palpatine said, pulling his neck collar for effect. He walked out of the conference room waving off his blue senate guards. "Leave me be."

Although he usually wore it, today Darth Sidious was not wearing the long, pure jet-black robes he was accustomed to. Today was different, he was in an environment where wearing both his black robes and the fancy senatorial clothes he was wearing now would be too risky in a room filled with four Jedi Masters. Even if he could be in the same room as the Jedi without them even batting an eyelash.

_Tragic, but yet another reason why the Jedi Order is so laughable._

Unfortunately, the clothes he was wearing did not have a hood either, so he had to contact his apprentice without any disguise whatsoever. But it did not matter, as the room was dark enough to conceal his identity.

Sidious was in an abandoned room two floors below the conference room. It wasn't anything special, but it was away from prying eyes, and he knew that there were no security cameras filming him.

He pulled out a comlink and activated it. In an instant, a blue static-looking figure soon materialized into his apprentice, Darth Tyranus.

"What is it, my Master?" Tyranus bowed on one knee and looked down.

"Lord Tyranus." Sidious shifted to his real voice, his _true _voice. The voice of the Sith. "It seems that the Jedi are growing bolder and bolder with each passing day."

Tyranus looked up at Sidious, waiting, perhaps even urging, for him to reveal his next move.

"Mace Windu has a plan to capture two of our worlds: Sullust and Sluis Van. I do not want them to succeed." Palpatine watched Tyranus' face drop, just a fraction, as it always did when either Mace Windu or Yoda came up in a conversation. He found it pathetic that a Dark Lord of the Sith could be scared of a two-foot tall green puppet.

"Do you wish me to send out Ventress, my Lord, or General Grievous? He has just returned from his mission…another failure unfortunately."

Tyranus always used the Sith-wannabe "assassin" and that monster cyborg general. Although it was a Sith trait to use pawns in order for goals to succeed, the problem with Tyranus' was that his plans_ would not _succeed using his usual failed lackeys. No, he wanted to send a message to Tyranus that if he wanted to be a Sith, a _true _Sith, he needed to act like a Sith. His cowardice could not be allowed to continue unabated.

"No, my apprentice, I want you personally to stop them. Kill them if you will, but do not let them succeed." Sidious smiled, and he felt the unease for Tyranus to see his master's true face smile like that.

"Of course, my lord. Where do you wish me to go? Sluis Van? Sullust?" Tyranus did not look like he wanted to openly confront any Jedi, but Sidious did not care. It was time to see if Darth Tyranus was true to the Sith cause.

"I want you to stop the Jedi before they even reach Sluis Van, I want you to stop them over the planet Triton. We cannot afford to lose Sluis Van, Lord Tyranus." Sidious wanted to tell him that Mace Windu and Luminara were going to lead the mission there, but he decided against it. He would make the test even more difficult for him. He needed to learn that treachery and deception was the way of the Sith, and that only by opening himself fully to the power of the dark side he could do anything, including defeating Mace Windu.

"Masters Saesee Tiin and Agen Kolar will be leading the mission." Sidious continued. "Prepare yourself for them, and tell General Grievous to prepare himself for Mace Windu and Luminara Unduli, as he will be in charge of the defense of Sullust."

General Grievous was supposed to strike fear in the heart of the Jedi. That even somebody without the Force could defeat them. But Grievous was an unknown quantity, where sometimes he could fight any member of the Council on his own or, at other times, lose to a single Padawan learner. He needed to find the balance, the balance where he could finally learn to be the Jedi killer he was literally _made_ to be.

Tyranus rose. "I will prepare at once, my Lord. I shall not fail you."

"You best be right, Lord Tyranus. You best be right…" Sidious closed down the comlink and walked back up to the conference room.

Supreme Chancellor Palpatine returned to the war room a few minutes later, smiling.

"Master Windu, I feel your plan is an ample opportunity for the war to end quickly and I give it my full approval."

Tarkin looked betrayed. "Chancellor! If I may-"

"Lend your ships to the invasion? Yes, you may," Palpatine sternly said to Tarkin. "Do not worry, I personally guarantee that Eriadu will be safe from any Separatist attack. They will be too busy defending their own territory to make any attacks on the Republic."

Mace Windu clapped he hands together once. "And so be it. We leave tomorrow. I have already called in my forces and Luminara's are on standby."

"Well done, Master Jedi." Palpatine said as Mace Windu and the other Jedi walked out of the room. "Just watch out, Master Windu. The Separatists don't give up their worlds easily…"

Mace turned to face the Supreme Chancellor, his expression clouded with concern. A hint from the Force, perhaps?

"And if there is one thing I've learned about the Separatists, it is that nothing is as easy it seems."

With that Palpatine walked out of the room, leaving Mace to wonder if there was any hidden meaning in Palpatine's words.


	3. Chapter 3

**TWO**

_In a recent survey taking by HoloNet News subscribers, seventy percent said that The Clone Wars started because the Jedi refused to take the necessary steps to prevent the Confederacy's rising. Twenty percent blamed Representative Binks for giving the Chancellor emergency powers and the significant other being the Military Creation Act in itself showed the Republic could no longer negotiate with enemies without force._

_-_Recent HoloNet News Article

THE HOME OF COUNT DOOKU

SAFFIA, SERENNO

Count Dooku was a Sith Lord. Right? Well, it didn't seem like it. Not the way his master, Darth Sidious, had just spoken to him.

Dooku tossed aside a recent report from General Grievous, highlighting yet another failed "negotiation" trip, this time to the world of Manaan. The droid was becoming predictable in his ability to turn an assured victory into failure. Even his assassin, his _idea _for an assassin, Asajj Ventress, had reported that she had again lost the trail of Anakin Skywalker. It was just two of the many failures the Confederacy has suffered recently. For Dooku, the failures were all too common.

Ever since the Republic had begun its push into the Separatist-controlled territories of the Mid and Inner Rims, it seemed as if his master had purposely set the Separatists on a course for failure. Failures which ultimately tarnished the reputation of the illustrious Count Dooku. His hatred for losing was only outmatched by his hatred for his master's vitriolic outbursts that placed the blame squarely on his shoulders.

After all, it wasn't his fault that the people he had put together were losing an unwinnable war. Yes, an unwinnable war.

But now, Dooku was supposed to personally defend one of the Separatists' last shipyard worlds by stopping the Republic and the Jedi before they even reached the planet. It wasn't a question of how, but why?

For Count Dooku, the why was always harder than the how. He had billions and _billions _of credits at his disposal and he was a very smart man, wise beyond his years. But despite all that, sometimes he could not understand why. _Why _would his master set him up for failure and than berate him for it? Why him personally? Why did he have to lead the defense of Sluis Van?

It was a test, of that he had no doubt. But was it a test of loyalty or a test of skill? Perhaps both? The way his master worked, it wouldn't surprise him if the true reason for the test was some kind of third option that no one could ever hope to understand.

It couldn't be a test of loyalty. Hadn't he shown his loyalty by quitting the Jedi Order and leading a rebellion against the antiquated mystics and the Republic he once served? Even if the Republic, or more importantly, the Senate, had been corrupt, any feelings of remorse for abandoning the institutions had been squelched. He proved his loyalty to Sidious by joining him.

A test of skill? Hardly. He was one of the greatest swordmasters that the Jedi Order had ever produced. He was able to duel even the Jedi Grandmaster Yoda, a furious battle that pitted a former apprentice against his master. He had tasted the victory, would have surely blotted out the light of the Jedi Order...

_Until I ran away._

He didn't see his retreat as cowardly. He dueled Yoda to prove a point. To prove that he was greater than any Jedi Master, with the power of the dark side flowing through him. He could not afford to simply stay around playing with his old master while his new one was awaiting him. There had been plans to set in motion.

_But you still have much to learn. _Both Yoda and his master had said this.

What else could he have left to learn? He had studied the holocron of Darth Andeddu, thanks his spy, Quinlan Vos. He learned many ancient dark side secrets there.

Perhaps his master had underestimated the skills of his apprentice. It had been too long since Dooku had actually dueled any of the Jedi Order's members. But his master never mentioned that he actually needed to face any of the Jedi, just that he wanted them stopped.

Dooku was going to do just that.

Dooku's home was massive. He was a Count, after all, with wealth beyond even a senator's wildest dreams.

He wandered into his communications room, a large, circular room with a viewpoint of the mountainous Serenno in the background, as his thoughts continued to plague him. A hologram projector immediately activated when he stepped in and a droid's voice boomed through an intercom system, cutting through his thoughts. "Would you like to make a call, Count?"

"Yes," Dooku said. "Contact Herub Grissom."

After a few seconds, a fairly tall looking Gran appeared in hologram form in front of him. "Count Dooku…and here I thought we were not on speaking terms?"

Herub was the leader of a small crime syndicate called the Star Slaughterers . Nothing more than common thieves and pirates, this group actually had the nerve to attempt to break into Dooku's home a few years back and rob him blind.

Unfortunately, they did not know that the home they were robbing was the home of a Dark Lord of the Sith. And, unfortunately for them, they found out the hard way.

After Herub had begged the Count to spare him and his crew, Dooku did. At the moment, he hadn't understood why. But he felt something, probably the Force, telling him so. Maybe it was a final "good deed" before fully turning into a Sith Lord…

But whatever the reason, now Dooku needed him in his latest ploy.

"Herub, I have a job for you," Dooku announced, cutting through the pleasantries.

"What's in it for me?" the Gran asked hesitantly.

Dooku looked at the Gran, growing slightly annoyed. "You, of all people, should know the extent of my wealth... and my generosity."

"True, true," Herub said. "What's the job?"

"You and your crew will head to Triton and you will kidnap the religious leader of Triton. You are aware of how the Triton natives obsess about a being they call Gactimus?"

"Yes, yes," Herub said, nodding furiously. "Some of my crew once found themselves stuck on one of the Triton moons, and a few relayed that they had almost died of boredom. You cannot even bring stimulants to the planet! Plus, you have to listen to them go on and _on _about that Gactimus figure of theirs." The Gran stopped, mulling Dooku's plan. "Why do you need us to kidnap this figure? Something against the Tritonites, Count?"

"Not exactly. The Republic is sending a task force to the planet of Sluis Van soon and I want them stopped on Triton." Dooku didn't care for the Tritonites much. They were primitive, beneath him. As such, they weren't much of a threat. Kidnapping their leader would prove to be a simple task for a group like Herub's. "I will provide you with an interdiction engine. Once I give you the signal, you will activate it and pull both the Republic's and my fleet out of hyperspace. The interdiction engine itself you will hide in the nearby asteroid field that is locally dubbed, 'Gactimus' Halo.'"

"What's the catch? The Republic won't be happy about us kidnapping their citizens," Herub said. The Gran's three eyes narrowed at the mention of possible combat with the Republic. Whether the reaction was born of cowardice or self-preservation, Dooku could not tell.

Nor did he care.

"Your group will simply be a neutral party. You will say that you have no love for neither the Republic nor the Confederacy. I don't care why. Perhaps one side killed your mother. Perhaps you love your independence. Perhaps, even, you are simply crazy. Whatever the reason, just declare the neither fleet will enter or leave the planet's atmosphere until one of them pays some kind of ransom."

Dooku wanted the Gran to get creative, so when he did pull Dooku out of hyperspace, his surprise would be genuine.

"The catch is that a pair of Jedi will be with the Republic," Dooku added, answering the Gran's question. "If I were you, I would prepare. These Jedi will be hard to fool."

_Unless you're my master, that is._

"Alright, Count. You got a deal. We'll be on our way to Triton in a few hours. Just remember... I want a large sum of money for this," Herub said as he closed the transmission.

"You'll get what you deserve, scum." Dooku murmured. He stormed from the communications room, his black cloak billowing behind him, as he began to remotely prepare his shuttle for launch to rendezvous with General Grievous's forces.

SOROSUUB CORPORATION FACTORY 316

SULLUST

Nirl Tisil considered himself an average person with an average job living an average life. He, of course, was a Sullustan, like most of the people that worked in the SoroSuub Corporation factories.

Nirl's job didn't require much. He punched in his time card when he arrived, made sure what he and his partners were working on didn't explode, and punched out after ten hours of labor.

Nirl lived at home with his father. Although most would find such living arrangements pathetic, it was different for Nirl. His mother killed when he was little, and had been raised by his father, himself a factory worker. Ailing health had forced his father to retire in the previous year, and Nirl found himself in the shoes his father had worn so many years before.

SoroSuub Corporation provided all members of its workforce a very small, but comfortable, apartment right next to the factory. Sure, maybe he could afford a more luxurious place, but he had shared many memories in this home... like the various times he had almost set the apartment on fire when attempting to cook. Those were his father's favorite anecdotes, and whenever Nirl returned home with fresh ingredients instead of a SoroSuub pre-packaged meal, his father would gladly embellish one of the cooking tales for their amusement.

Now, Nirl was on his way to the foreman's office. Visions of his paycheck, which would soon be in his small hands, danced in front of his eyes. It would be enough for him to keep his apartment, a month's worth of meals and even a little extra to keep the sports package to his small holoviewer.

"Hey, Sorn! How's it going?" Nirl said as he spotted the foreman outside of his office. He was talking with one of the Gossams who worked for the Commerce Guild in hushed tones.

"…what? Are you sure? Is your intel right?" Sorn's brows were deeply furrowed as he spoke to the Gossam, but he straightened once he heard Nirl.

"Oh. Hello Nirl, I have your pay here in my office." Sorn turned to the Gossam. "I'm sorry, but I need to take this. We'll finish our conversation later."

The Gossam looked at Nirl, but spoke to Sorn. "Yes… please keep what I said in mind." The Gossam walked away, without looking back.

"What is it?" Nirl asked. "Something is bothering you I can tell." Nirl was concerned for Sorn, who looked as if he'd seen a ghost.

"It…was nothing." Sorn reached into one of his desk drawers and pulled out a piece of paper and wrote out his paycheck but added something on the _back _of the paper and handed it to Nirl.

Nirl took it and walked out of the office, back to his home, not daring to look at the piece of paper until he was finally in the safety of his apartment.

It was his normal paycheck, of course, but on the back, Nirl could see that Sorn had written something: _They are coming, watch your back._

Nirl was puzzled by this. Who is coming? Assassins? News reporters? Who?

He didn't have anything of worth that could be stolen and he wasn't worth anything to anybody, except maybe SoroSuub Corporation. This was odd, even for Sorn. He'd have to talk to him about it tomorrow, even if the foreman didn't want to talk about it.

Something odd was going on...

Setting the note aside, he turned on CIS Shadowfeed and listened to the new reports.

"In recent news, Sullustan Admiral Dua Ningo crushed the Republic forces at Foerost using the new Bulwark Fleet. He has declined comment again, but one of his officers answered questions. After we asked him if he could match General Grievous in a fleet-to-fleet engagement, he said 'I doubt it, but where is General Loathsom? I'm sure he couldn't match Admiral Ningo!' It is nice to see such confidence in our military after some major setbacks. That's all for this addition to CIS Shadowfeed!"

He must have missed the whole program. Nirl shrugged, taking comfort in the fact that there probably hadn't been anything worth mentioning anymore anyway.

Nirl kept the holoviewer on, but after checking in on his father, he went straight to bed. Sleep did not come easy, as the meaning of the note tormented him.

_They are coming, watch your back._


	4. Chapter 4

**THREE**

"_Six there were for generations of Jedi. The seventh, is not well-known. Powerful form it is. Deadliest of all. But dangerous it is, for its master as well as its opponent. Few have studied. One student alone, to mastery has risen._"

―Yoda on the lightsaber forms

REPUBLIC HEADQUARTERS,

ERIADU

Luminara Unduli watched her troops in action, preparing for the upcoming battle at Sluis Van. Once Master Windu had asked her to assist him in the upcoming battle, she had her troops transported to Eriadu almost immediately and they had been practicing ever since.

At Republic HQ, there was a large, circular room that was usually used for parties or other social events. Today, however, it was in use by Master Unduli's troops. All the seating had been cleared out, leaving open space in which clones were practicing taking on certain types of Separatist droids such as the super battle droids or even the dreaded destroyer droid. These were, of course, holograms, but they looked almost life like. When a clone was hit by a stun laser, Luminara hesitated to go in herself and save him.

But that was just Jedi instinct, saving lives.

The clone would always get up immediately afterwards and shrug it off like Luminara did when she was hit by a training lightsaber during her years as a youngling.

In this latest exercise, ten clone troopers were to take on ten super battle droids with only their blaster pistols and a single ion grenade for the group. The first few clones learned that a blaster pistol wouldn't shoot past the hologram and when the "droids" fired their stun laser and hit them, they knew they had to think about this one.

With seven clones left, six of them jumped out behind the cover that the program gave them and ran to the left of the droids firing their pistols to draw their attention while the seventh clone sneaked to the right.

The super battle droids began firing their guns and immediately three clones went down. But before the droids could fire another shot, sparks began flying out of the droids and all ten of them dropped instantly.

The clone that went to the right had thrown the ion grenade at the droids from behind, waiting until they were all grouped together.

He had sacrificed three of his brothers for a small victory.

Even though the clones weren't in any mortal danger, it did disturb Luminara that they would do this anyway.

The program ended and the holograms disappeared. The remaining clones walked out into the middle of the room and cheered for the one that thrown the grenade.

"Great shot, Hunter! That was one in a million!" said a member of one of the squads that watched.

"It's so simple, but brilliant," said another clone.

Mace Windu appeared behind Luminara. "So how are they doing?"

"Far beyond what I'd expect from them, but, of course, they have always impressed me," Luminara said, continuing to watch the clones praise each other for their good work.

Luminara had worked with the clones for two years now, and had always been astonished by what the clones could accomplish. Whether it was holding a line against overwhelming odds or subtly taking down a power station kilometers into enemy territory, they seemed limitless in their abilities.

At one point, though, her Padawan, Barriss Offee, had mentioned that the clones, under those "brain worms" things that the Republic had stumbled upon when they retook Geonosis, had boasted that they were skilled enough to "take down a Jedi."

This disturbed Luminara. Her feelings toward the clones began to move toward suspicion, but she eventually embraced the belief that it must have been the brain worms making the clones say it. The Clones had shown the utmost loyalty since the beginning of the war, and showed no signs of stopping.

Plus, even though the clones were excellent soldiers, Luminara did not think they could take down a Jedi.

"That is great news, Master Luminara. But I sense something is troubling you." Mace always could tell when something wasn't right. And it was true. Something was troubling her.

"Mace, I'm deeply concerned about the way it seems that the clones will disregard their brothers for the sake of the mission," she said.

"I understand. But sometimes, sacrifices are needed to achieve what is needed to be achieved." It seemed like Mace had had this conversation before with somebody else. Maybe himself?

"Yes, but Mace, our philosophy is to protect the citizens of the Republic. Don't these clones count? They disregard themselves, even their brothers, to win a battle."

"Of course the clones count. But Luminara, the clones have the same job as us. Defend the Republic. Protect the Republic. These clones are soldiers, and being a soldier brings tough decisions. Decisions that shouldn't be decided. Sacrifice a brother for the safety of the Republic? If the clone died knowing that his sacrifice was saving the Republic, I think he would want that." Mace looked out into the room where his own purple-striped 187th Legion was getting ready for it's own exercises.

Watching Mace's troops train was new for Luminara. She never witnessed the 187th in action before, but she did hear the stories. Especially stories of Dantooine.

Once the troopers took to the floor, she noticed Mace's troops seemed more aggressive than Luminara's 41st Elite. None of the squads that attempted the simulation Luminara's troops had run earlier tried to group the droids together and pop the grenade from behind. Instead, some rushed the droids and shot them in the head with a pistol, which, at close range, stopped the hologram. Some waited from behind cover and threw the ion grenade blindly, taking some droids down and rushing the rest.

In the end, Luminara's troops had less casualties but Mace's had a higher success rate. It would be interesting to see both in action together.

"I think it's time we begin loading up our troops. I want to leave tonight," Mace said as he walked out of the room with Luminara silently following him.

She wondered how many of the cheering clones she would see again.

The scene before Mace Windu could not have looked any more beautiful…and scary at the same time.

Twenty Venator-class Star Destroyers were outside of the Republic HQ, ready to be divided up between the two groups. Ten would go with Mace's group, and the other ten would go to Saesee's.

Mace watched as the troopers and vehicles began boarding the Destroyers on a very slow, but on beat, rhythm.

Because the assault on Sullust would require more ground troops than the Sluis Van battle, Saesee Tiin's fleet would also include a Nexu-class supercruiser. The supercruiser was a variation of the old Acclamator assault ship, and this particularly one was called the Legion. Rumor had it that it could hold up to twenty thousand clone troopers. These supercruisers were rare, the only other one that was used was the Nexu itself, during the Battle of Ord Cestus a year ago with Kit Fisto's and Obi-Wan Kenobi's mission there. The supercruiser was a bit bigger than the Acclamator assault ships, but it lacked a high concentration of weapons in exchange for more room to hold troopers. Amazingly, it also had individual drop capsules for all twenty thousand clone troopers. Because of the lesser weapons, the supercruisers were usually considered troop transports, requiring other support craft to defend it. Besides the sheer number of troops that the vessels held, the Destroyers were also packed with a dozen or so AT-TEs and gunships, so that the troops on board the Venators could get to the planets below.

Saesee Tiin stood before Mace Windu, arms crossed as he looked out over the massive loading of troops. The silver armor he wore was barely noticeable in the moonlit sky.

"Master Windu, I trust your judgment, but…do you really think we will need so many troops to take two worlds?"

Mace looked down, seemingly lost in thought. "We need these worlds, Saesee. The Separatists are being held up here in the Outer Rim. They will have just as many, if not more, droids as we do clones. But if it gets too hot, report to me and we'll abandon the mission."

"Just like that?" Saesee asked.

"Just like that," Mace agreed.

"Have the other Jedi arrived yet?"

Along with the troops, Mace Windu had asked a number of Jedi Knights to join the mission to help lead the invasion.

"Yes. Emus Mo'abos will be traveling with me, along with Drea Rekkon, an Aqualish." Mace answered. "They will be dropped off at Clak'dor VII, while we continue to Sluis Van."

"And Voolvif Monn, along with that Zeltron Miran Manten, will join me and will mop up at Agomar, correct?"

"Yes. Clak'dor VII and Agomar shouldn't be too well guarded, so try not to lose any of your ships, Saesee," Mace said, a brief smile lighting his face.

"Very well, my friend. Don't you get blown up now or anything," Saesee chuckled.

Mace chuckled too. "Well, my fellow Jedi, this fight will be hard. But it will be worth it…"

"General Windu?" A tall human man approached the Jedi wearing the grey Republic uniform standard for an officer. "Admiral Kirr Teeba says that we are ready to take off."

"Thank you, Lieutenant Oldin. Tell the Admiral to start preparations. I'll be on shortly." Mace said.

Ray Oldin bowed. "Yes, General."

"Well, Master Tiin. You know the drill. May the Force be with you."

"And you, Master Windu. Let's hope the Separatists never know what hit them."

Mace nodded in agreement and headed to his flagship, Fighter.

SEPARATIST SPACE

GENERAL GRIEVOUS'S FLEET

"No no no, you senseless droid! You don't block Vaapad with Makashi!"

The voice belonged to a tired Weequay, the former Jedi Master Sora Bulq. He bellowed his frustration at General Grievous, the infamous Separatist leader that refused to learn proper lightsaber technique. Whether the refusal was conscious or not, Sora did not know.

Grievous growled in frustration. "What? You told me to use Makashi against those kind of attacks!"

"Makashi is all finesse," Sora said. "It couldn't hold up against a Vaapad flurry like that, if I wouldn't had stopped, I would had sliced off you hand. Not that I'd be the first person to do so, mind you…"

"I don't see why you continue your rambling about that stupid form anyway!" Grievous was growing more and more angry at Sora's smart remarks. "I don't even face Jedi using it!"

"You either master Vaapad or it will master you," Sora retorted. "You can't learn it because you're not Force sensitive, but you need to know how to at least block it."

Grievous rolled his eyes in frustration.

"Again!" Sora shouted, igniting his main lightsaber and shoto.

Grievous brought out two of his lightsabers, waiting for Sora to make the first move.

Sora exploded into movement all at once, running toward his opponent and swinging his shoto carelessly at Grievous's torso. As Grievous parried the shoto attack easily, Sora jumped awkwardly to the side and brought his normal-sized lightsaber up to Grievous's head and smashed down hard on Grievous's other lightsaber, using his strength to push Grievous down.

But Grievous was stronger.

It took only a moment before the droid general literally pushed Sora off of him and growled again.

"Good, good. But how do you respond to this?" Sora ducked low and used his normal lightsaber to arc it behind his back while his shoto aimed for Grievous's feet.

The cyborg used his foot to grab both Sora's lightsaber and the hand that held it, and threw him across the room.

Landing hard against the durasteel wall, Sora had been taken by surprise. He had only a moment to recover quickly, judging by the heavy footsteps of what was surely the General charging him.

Now on the offensive, and with hate in his eyes, Grievous twirled his sabers into a cutting blade and attacked, using his strength to batter down Sora.

Sora easily parried the Djem So maneuver and replied with a light touch of Niman, bringing both blades around for Grievous to block, but it left him in an awkward position.

In a saber lock, Grievous used his considerable brute strength to push Sora to his knees.

But Grievous didn't have the Force, and Sora did. Using the Force, he sped up his movements and quickly got out of the saber lock, rolling as Grievous cut the floor where Sora had stood mere moments before. Sora applied a continuous Force push at Grievous, but Grievous didn't move backwards. Instead, he walked forward. His feet dug into the floor, allowing him to march his way to Sora.

Once close enough, Sora stopped the Force push and jumped over Grievous, turning to stab him in the back. Grievous's body twisted in a way that no human could ever hope to attempt. His head and torso were the complete opposite of his feet, and he blocked the attack while adding a quick sweep that knocked Sora over.

All at once, Grievous held his blade at Sora's throat.

"You lose, Jedi scum."

Light applause emerged from the background, as Count Dooku stepped out from the shadows.

"Good, very good," he said as Grievous gave Sora one final nasty look and deactivated his lightsabers.

Sora got up on his own and nodded to the General. "He's better, but still needs improvement. I think he is ready to take on Jedi Knights now."

Dooku chuckled. "And Master Bulq, that was an impressive display of swordsmanship. Although I disagree that Makashi would not be able to hold against Vaapad. I believe it would be fine."

Sora raised an eyebrow. "Really, Count? One would think that power would overwhelm finesse. "

The Count's face became serious. "Just because one has strength does not mean one has the advantage."

"Would you like to test your words, Count?" Sora reignited his lightsabers. "I have always wanted to spar with the great swordsman Dooku."

Dooku snatched his lightsaber from his belt and ignited it. "We'll see."

Dooku made the first move, using quick strikes to find a weak point in Sora's form.

Sora saw this and attempted to weaken his parries with his shoto, but Dooku quickly changed tactics and focused on Sora's shoto using the momentary weakness on his shoto to try to flip it out of his hands.

Sora responded by moving his main lightsaber in an overhead sweep aimed at Dooku's head.

Dooku ducked and lightly blocked Sora's main saber, slowly moving his saber close to his shoto.

Sora panicked and removed the shoto from Dooku's sword, only to receive an elbow to the face.

As Sora staggered back, Dooku withdrew and threw Force lightning at Sora, just a quick burst as he swung his saber up toward Sora's arm.

Sora caught the lightning with his shoto and brought his blade to the side, barely catching Dooku's.

"You are quick, Master Bulq," Dooku said as they reached the saber-lock. "But quickness, like strength, isn't key to a fight."

Sora was struggling. Although Vaapad used strength and quickness, Dooku's Makashi used hardly any strength and he had plenty of energy left.

Dooku slipped his saber under Sora's saber and stopped millimeters from his arm. "Form and finesse win duels, Master Bulq."

Sora was amazed. The duel had hardly lasted more than half of the one with Grievous.

"You used dirty tricks. You elbowed me in the face and used lightning."

"Form and finesse, Sora," Dooku replied. "A lightsaber duel isn't just two combatants with laser swords swinging and parrying. You use the Force to get an advantage over the opponent and you finish them with your lightsaber."

Grievous looked up and spoke for the first time since Dooku arrived. "Count Dooku, what brings you to my ship?"

"I'm afraid, General, that our services are required for another mission. Lord Sidious wants us to personally defend two key worlds from the Jedi."

"Jedi. I hope Lord Sidious isn't leading us astray with false hopes again." Grievous had continued to grow angry since his return to Manaan. He believed it boiled down to feeling like he was getting robbed of every opportunity to kill Jedi.

"General, I can assure you that you will have your chance to face Jedi in this next mission." It occurred to Dooku that he sounded like a father giving a crying child candy to calm him down.

"Where do you need me?"

"Sullust. You will take the bulk of your forces here and head to Sullust where you will coordinate with the President of the Commerce Guild Shu Mai to make sure the Republic doesn't conquer the world," Dooku said. "Defending the world is more important than slaughtering Jedi, Grievous. I cannot stress this enough. If you fail my master, I will personally see it that you command nothing more than your bodyguards."

Grievous just seemed to get angrier when Dooku threatened him.

"Fine! But let me swear to you, I'm not in this for your revolution, Count. I expect dead Jedi!"

"As do I. And you will get your wish, General, if you follow the plans my master has set before us. He has great plans in store."

Grievous laughed. "I doubt it. Lord Sidious is probably making this up as he goes along! I doubt he has a plan in store for the galaxy." For the first time, it seemed that Grievous was beginning to calm down. "But I will follow his orders…for now."

"Excellent. I will intercept the Jedi at Triton and we will show Lord Sidious that we are not just pawns in his 'grand scheme of things.'"

Sora Bulq looked at Dooku. "And me? What shall I do?"

As Dooku walked out of the room, he quickly turned to Sora. "I would work on your form while we are gone. It is getting a bit messy."

An open mouthed Sora watched as Dooku walked out. He turned to Grievous, shaken. "He is hiding something. I can sense it."

Grievous pressed a button on his person, and within moments an escort of IG-100 MagnaGuards entered the room. "His plans do not matter to me. Now…get off my ship.


	5. Chapter 5

**FOUR**

"_My philosophy is: Never choose a side, because either's money is good and nobody shoots at you."_

- Herub Grissom

DREADNAUGHT-CLASS HEAVY CRUISER LAST LAUGH

TRITON SYSTEM

It didn't take long for boredom to set in as Herub Grissom and the Star Slaughterers orbited Triton.

There really was no other way to describe the way Herub felt at the moment. He was truly bored.

Triton was not the Great Jewel of the Outer Rim, but rather the flattest and most desolate place in the galaxy. In many respects, this was because of the natives that lived on the planet. The Tritonites. They worshiped a speculator being called Gactimus, and even though the galaxy's best religious experts could not even figure who or what Gactimus was, one thing was for sure; the Tritonites loved Gactimus.

Stories had been spread before about people that had questioned Gactimus's existence when they went to Triton. According to some, they were sacrificed to the celestial being through some _very _disturbing ways. Others claimed that the Tritonites would burn the ships of nonbelievers and leave them stranded on the planet until Gactimus was accepted into their lives.

Of course, common sense ruled that these were just stories that either attempted to either scare people into staying away from Triton or draw the crazy down to the planet. Either way, the stories probably weren't true. As much as Herub would have liked to believe that, though, he made sure that the small team he had sent to the Triton surface was always in contact with him. A lot could go wrong...

"Not much to see so far, Captain," one of the members of the squad said over the comlink. This particular soldier was named Royscz, a human that Herub had trusted for any kind of intimidation that was required on any mission. "I don't even think the Tritonites know we are here."

Herub wasn't a person for combat, and so he made it a rule to avoid it when possible. Although he kept a small blaster pistol on his person, in case of emergencies, he claimed, he never used it unless one of the crew needed a 'lesson in manners.'

"Well, keep me updated. If you run into any natives, let me know," Herub replied.

Herub could hear the click of the safety going off for the man's blaster rifle. "Alright, Capt'n."

The Gran had sent a small, five-man squad down to the surface of Triton. They were armed, of course. How else could his crew capture the Elder of one of the settlements of Triton?

* * *

After Count Dooku gave Herub the orders to capture the Elder, he had called up the two members of his crew that had been on Triton before. The two members, a Klatooinian and a Gamorrean, weren't the smartest beings alive, and couldn't really give the type of description Herub was looking for.

"You two have been to Triton before, right?" he had asked them.

The Klatooinian and Gamorrean looked at each other, thinking that they were in trouble and that a one-way trip to Triton was their punishment.

"Well, not particularly…but we did end up on one of its moons," the Klatooinian said.

The Gamorrean continued the story but the Klatooinian had to help translate for Herub.

"He says that it is dull and boring there. They allow no stimulants, and settlements are spread throughout the planet one every five hundred kilometers or so."

"Is this on the planet or the moon?" Herub asked.

"Both, I believe. The moon is just as bad as the planet, except for a small spaceport where we got stuck at," the Klatooinian said, no longer translating.

The Gamorrean's voice changed, becoming a high-pitched squeal that sounded as if he were recalling a bad memory.

"Yes, the spaceport," the Klatooinian told his companion. "That is where we meet Tritonites and they give us boring speech about the Being."

"What being? You mean Gactimus?"

The Klatooinian shuddered. "Yes, him. For hours and hours they discussed it. About how he used mystical powers to defeat Him. The one they never discuss."

Herub did not seem impressed. "Look, I have a job from a _very _wealthy client and I want to know about the planet Triton, not about some legend, some myth." The Gamorrean seemed to wince when Herub said this.

After a few moments of silence the Klatooinian said, "The planet Triton is a wasteland. Not from battle or abandoned civilization, but from time itself."

Herub remained silent and let the Klatooinian continue.

"Triton has never really been explored as of yet. The very primitive native species has colonized only a third of the planet. The rest is filled with dry, barren flatlands, with creatures that nobody knows of. Rumor has it that there are secret passageways and rivers that travel underneath the planet. To get to the…_good _stuff if you know what I mean."

"Hidden natural resources?" he asked.

"No no, they say that there are relics from ancient times down there. Priceless, unique relics," the Klatooinian said.

Herub liked the idea of priceless, unique relics, but he had to focus on the Count's mission. "Alright, suppose I…I needed to know where to find the leader of this…cult? Where would I go?"

"The Elder? You cannot get to the Elder. The Elder gets _you_. The only way you can find him is if he wants _you _to find _him,_" the Gamorrean grunted, sounding more and more dazed with each sentence he spoke. The Klatooinian translated his words, and merely shrugged.

"It can't be that hard to find him. They are primitive, it's not like they have a impenetrable fortress or some kind of moon-sized battlestation guarding the place," Herub said, chuckling as he said 'moon-sized battlestation.' As if _that _would ever happen.

"There is this city in which he is known to reside. The city is walled, but not to keep anybody out," the Klatooinian said, eying the Gamorrean.

"Not to keep anybody out? What, are they trying to keep something _in_?" Herub asked.

"It does not matter. You will be allowed to enter as long as you do not bring any stimulants. They hate stimulants."

Herub was beginning to lose patience. The city was walled, but not for defense or to keep anybody out? What mess were these Tritonites?

"Well, you make it sound easy. A five-man squad should be able to capture the Elder without any unnecessary blood being spilled."

"You do not approach the Elder…the Elder approaches _you,_" the Gamorrean grunted. Herub needed no translation.

"I get that. But will it work?" Herub asked, looking at the Klatooinian for a response.

"I guess, but I don't know if the Tritonites will just let you waltz away with their leader," the Klatooinian warned. "You may be risking a lot."

"That's the life of a pirate for ya," Herub said and thanked his crew for their information. But before the Gamorrean left, he grunted once more.

"_You do not approach the Elder…the Elder approaches you."_

_

* * *

_

The warning crept into Herub's mind and sunk into the crevices. He was willing to believe the Gamorrean had knocked back a few too many, but he was still left unsettled.

"Any news?" Herub asked the squad.

The comlink crackled to life and the same squad member answered. "Nothing really. We ran into a shipwreck. No survivors. It looks old, already been picked clean."

"Do you know how far away you are from the coordinates I sent you?" Herub asked.

"A kilometer or two. Probably about ten minutes away."

Herub grunted an affirmative and switched frequencies. It was time for him and his crew to hide the interdiction engine Dooku had given him.

The engine wasn't very big and could, theoretically, remain on the _Last Laugh _hidden pretty well. But that wasn't Dooku's orders. He specifically wanted it in the asteroid field.

Herub wasn't really sure how Dooku could have gotten the interdiction engine to his crew without him knowing. He had received the call from Dooku on Coruscant, and later that night, one of the crew members had received the interdiction engine in his daily supplies.

_Odd,_ he had thought at the time.

It didn't matter now, though. He had had the engine inspected for explosives, and when it was deemed clean, he had one of his labor droids carry it onto the _Last Laugh._

The _Last Laugh _didn't have a very large hangar. It could carry one shuttle or freighter, and up to twelve starfighters. In its heyday, it would have held a squadron. Now, though, one freighter was stationed in the hangar. It was a very sleek looking _Starlight-_class light freighter that Herub had stolen a while back from a Kuati noble. Also in the hangar were twelve _Dagger-_class starfighters, very small, unimportant fighters that would only be used to swarm an enemy.

The interdiction engine had been put onboard the small freighter before he entered the system, and the ship was on stand-by, ready for his orders to be sent away.

Herub had put a Nikto in charge of piloting the vessel. The Nikto's name had been too long for Herub, or any of the crew, to understand or pronounce. Instead, he was just called "Nobody," because nobody would ever call him by his name and just referred to him as "Nikto." In theory, "Nobody" would pilot the small freighter out to the asteroid field, Gactimus's Halo, on the other side of Triton and wait until Herub gave the signal. Once he did that, Nobody would activate it and pull both fleets out of the system.

"Nobody? Are you ready?" Herub asked him, switching communications frequencies.

A Barabel member of his crew happened to walk by at that moment and overheard Herub.

"Who are you talking to?" the Barabel wheezed.

Herub shot a quick glance at the Barabel, surprised. "Nobody."

The Barabel shook it's head and walked away, mumbling. "Okay, but you didn't have to be rude about it…just wanted to know…"

Ignoring the Barabel's comments, Herub waited for Nobody's response.

"_Sie batha ne beechee?_" Nobody replied in Huttese, which meant 'Are you talking about me?'

"Yea, _stoopa,_" Herub replied. "Do you have our _blastoh _on board my _dyst._?

"Of course. _U wamma wonka?_" Nobody replied.

Herub rolled his eyes, even though Nobody could see him, "Of course you will be paid."

Even though Nobody couldn't understand Basic, he seemed understand the fact that he was getting paid. Immediately, his tone was warmer.

"Now," Herub told him his directions in Huttese. "You see that asteroid field over there? Take my ship there and wait for my signal. Once I give you the signal, activate the engine in the back."

"But if I'm flying, doesn't that mean the engines are online?" Nobody replied back, also in Huttese.

"Not those engines! The engine I gave you!" Honestly, was it really that difficult?

"Oh, okay. Yea, don't worry Capt'n, I got this!"

"Good. Wait for my signal," Herub said, cutting the comm.

Herub could hear a deep rumbling start in the background, and knew the freighter was preparing to take off. Moments later, it flew right by his viewport.

Now that that part of the mission was done, he could focus on getting the Elder up to his ship.

A small red light began blinking, catching Herub's eye. He immediately activated the comm again and responded.

It was Royscz. "Alright, boss. We arrived at the city and the guards let us in without any trouble. We are about ready to enter what looks like a cathedral."

"What's the city look like?" Herub asked.

"Well…not much. The cathedral is easily the biggest building here. It's a small settlement, but big enough to hold a nice-sized village," the soldier continued. "I see something that looks like some houses, but not much else."

"Alright, keep me posted," Herub said.

"Well, we are just about to enter the cathedral. There are a _lot _of guards, but they don't seem to notice us…"

"Anybody else a little freaked out? I mean, look at what is drawn on these walls…" Herub could hear another member of the squad in the background, a twinge of panic in the man's voice.

"Calm down, you know you can't do _that _with a spear," the soldier whispered. "Well, it seems we are in. The Tritonites are staring at us. I can't tell if they are angry, or happy to see us."

"What do the Tritonites look like?" Herub asked.

"Insectoid. They have these…I don't know what to call them. Pincers? Maybe? I don't know…" the soldier continued. "They are all black, with this…odd shaped head. Almost like a sphere. They have no tails, but that's not the creepy part…it's like they have no _eyes_. I'm serious, as I am walking the halls of this cathedral I see no eyes on any of these creatures."

"How do you know where to go? Do you know how to get to the Elder?"

"We don't, honestly. We are just following the rows upon rows of Tritonites that seem to be leading us to…"

"Whoa! Did you see that? One of them just…twitched…and it's looking right at me…staring…almost if…." One of the soldiers in the background seemed to to drift off, his voice becoming more monotone.

Herub heard a slap and then, "Calm down, soldier! You are just seeing things…"

That last part seemed like he was talking to himself more than reassuring the other soldier.

"We are approaching a large door. It looks like a place where the Elder would be kept," the soldier reported. Herub detected an edge to his voice, almost as if he'd become a bit unhinged during his short walk. His thoughts were shaken when a loud noise erupted from the comm. Immediately, Herub was demanding to know the source of it.

The soldier took a second to speak, and when he did, it seemed like he had an entirely new voice. A voice tainted with fear. "Well…ummm…the Tritonites just…moved…all of the sudden…their heads just…I don't know…_twitched to the side. _Like a reflex or something."

"Is anybody hurt?" Herub asked.

"No, just a little spooked. They moved when we mentioned the…_you know._"

Herub knew he was talking about the Elder. He rubbed unconsciously at the sweat beading his forehead.

"Okay, we are in the room and we see _him_."

"Good good, just bring him out and don't harm him…I don't want to make them angry."

Herub could hear the soldier yell to the Elder. "Okay, we don't want to hurt you…but you have to come with us now."

"What is he doing?" the Gran asked.

"He is just sitting here, like we don't exist. He isn't that big, a little smaller than the rest, actually. But he isn't black, he is red…almost like…"

Herub heard some strange mumbling coming from the other end of the comm, like a chant or something.

"That isn't you, is it?" Herub asked.

"No boss, it's the Elder…"

Another large bang erupted over the comm.

"Don't say that! Do you want to make them mad?"

"Yea, because kidnapping this guy will make them want to give us a medal," a faint voice complained.

"Shut up, the both of you. Just grab the guy and let's get out of hear," the soldier said. Herub heard a brief scuffle, and he assumed Royscz was grabbing the Elder. He expected an explosion, or a loss of contact. But nothing happened.

"Alright guys, lets blow this dump and get back to the ship," the soldier said. "Boss, we're putting stun cuffs on the Elder. He won't be going anywhere unless it's with us."

Herub breathed a sigh of relief, a bit shocked to find that he had been holding his breath.

"Herub…now all the Tritonites are making that chant…but their lips aren't moving!" Royscz reported.

"Just get out of there!" Herub yelled, his voice becoming high pitched. He wouldn't do anything unless his men were attacked, especially since there was the distinct possibility that the chanting was simply a show to scare the crew. If it was, it was working. He wasn't even on the world, and he was frightened.

"We are out of the cathedral, but everyone in the village have stopped what they are doing and are staring at us," Royscz said. "We are literally _running _toward the ship. We'll see you in a bit."

"Alright, good job men. Trust me when I say this is worth it. We will be so rich!" Herub cackled.

_So very very rich…_


	6. Chapter 6

**FIVE**

_ "Leave Agomar's defenses weakened. I want the bulk of your forces to remain near Sullust…and have the Jedi think that they have won control of that planet…fools…"_

-Count Dooku to General Grievous

The stars finally returned for General Saesee Tiin as his ship exited into the Agomar system. The other nine _Venator_-class Star Destroyers and the _Legion _also exited hyperspace at the same time, forming a very long line of capital ships.

"Commander, any enemy ships out there?" Saesee asked the clone, knowing the answer already.

"Yes, sir. The largest ship we have on radar is a Trade Federation droid control ship and three Techno Union _Hardcell _transports. They are already unloading starfighters."

Saesee turned to Agen Kolar, who was right beside him on the bridge, looking out the viewport at the swirling planet beneath them. "Well, Agen, let's go join the fun."

He and Agen began walking out of the bridge, the clones saluting them as they passed. "Commander, launch all fighters, but _only _from this ship. I don't want to lose too many people out there."

The Commander nodded. "I'll put the _Impavid _on stand-by and have her ready to attack whenever you are ready, sir."

"Very good, commander," Saesee said as he entered the elevator on the other side of the bridge. Along with Agen, he rode it down to the hangar bay. The elevator wasn't that big, but it was able to fit Saesee and Agen both without having it be a tight fight.

"Are you sure, Saesee?" Agen asked over the hum of the elevator. "One star destroyer against a control ship and five escorts?"

Saesee smiled. "Oh, I'm quite sure. I am going to be in the _Sharp Spiral _and I've never lost a mission with her yet."

The elevator doors opened and the Jedi walked out into the hangar bay. "Besides," Saesee continued. "We are using the Y-wing starfighters that General Skywalker put to good use."

The hangar bay of the _Impavid _was large. It was located directly in the middle of the ship, with hangar bay doors could open up quickly to let starfighters or even small transports in or out. Inside the hangar bay, there were over 50 ARC-170 starfighters, which were now the base starfighter clone troopers used now, and about two squadrons of Y-wing starfighters.

Y-wings weren't used very often, only seen in the beginning of the war as the V-wing starfighter quickly took over the bomber role for the Republic. General Tiin had always liked the Y-wing and decided to have them on-board the _Impavid. _"Just in case," he had said.

It seemed the order to launch all fighters had already been received, as there were only a few clones remaining in the hangar. The rest were already in their starfighters, waiting for General Tiin's order to launch.

One of the clone engineers approached Saesee and saluted. "General Tiin, we have your ship prepped and ready to fly!" he said. Looking at Agen, he added, "General Kolar, we have a reserve Eta-2 Actis for your use as well."

"Well, at least it beats that old starfighter I was using," Agen sighed. He walked across the hangar to the blue and white striped fighter sitting across from Saesee's _Sharp Spiral. _

Saesee thanked the engineer and proceeded to his specially made fighter. The _Sharp Spiral _was a customized Cutlass-9 patrol fighter that a group of Duros had given to him as thanks for a daring rescue he had performed. It was his most cherished prize, even more cherished than his lightsaber - for he could always build another one of those.

Jedi Master Adi Gallia had once complained that Saesee had talked to his fighter more than to her, a fellow Council Member, and Saesee had replied that she hadn't saved his life countless times in impossible situations.

The _Sharp Spiral _did not have a navigation computer because Saesee had such a master of the Force and piloting that he used the Force to guide it into hyperspace. Some said he was one of the greatest pilots in the Jedi Order, surpassed only by Anakin Skywalker of course. That Jedi has skills that Saesee could not even began to imagine, let alone duplicate.

Getting inside his starfighter sent a jolt of adrenaline through him. After getting a thumbs-up reply from Agen, Saesee activated his ship and watched the hangar bay doors open up.

He and Agen were the first fighters to leave but soon the Y-wings followed and all 50 of the ARC-170s brought up the rear. Soon enough, the Republic had a large fighter group ready to attack the Separatists.

"Here they come!" Tiin yelled over the comm. "Agen take half of the fighters and engage that droid control ship. I'll take care of these droid starfighters!"

As soon as Agen split the group up, droid starfighters swarmed the Republic fighters. They were all Vulture droid starfighters, no variety…the Separatists must be keeping their big guns for later…

Saesee rolled hard to the left and was able to avoid the first wave of attackers. The majority of the clones followed his manuever, but not all were so lucky.

"Green group, take them down!" Saesee said. The first wave had knocked ten clones out of commission…for good.

The ARC-170s maneuvered to intercept the Vultures, managing to destroy a few of them. But Vultures were fast…faster than the ARC-170s.

The clones needed to be quick in order to shoot down the Vultures. Saesee turned his fighter around, evading Vulture laser cannons, and used the Force to anticipate the next movements. His patience was reward, as he fired his own guns and watched three fighters erupt into flame.

But the battle was far from won.

Agen Kolar led his fighters toward the droid control ship. "All bombers follow me. ARCs, keep the guns off of us," he said to his group in clipped tones. "All the fighters are engaging Saesee's group, so all we need to do is avoid the turbolasers and fire away."

Twelve Y-wings followed Agen toward the droid control ship. The 25 ARCs that followed Agen went flying by at blazing fast speed, and as soon as they got close enough, the automatic quad turbolasers opened fire on the unauthorized Republic ships.

Because the turbolasers were operated by droids and not organics, the reaction time was markedly increased. Four fighters were destroyed on the initial pass, catching the fighters off-guard. But the one thing organics had that droids didn't was the ability to _adapt. _Droids would continue to do whatever they were programmed to, but organics could adapt to the situation and change strategies.

The ARC-170s divided into three groups and each group distracted a different part of the battleship. One group was near the left, one on the right, and one straight in the middle.

Agen was relying on the middle group to distract the turbolasers so he could fly in with the Y-wings and bombard the core vessel itself.

The ARCs were doing great, jinxing and evading the enemy fire by flying straight towards them and timing the fire of the guns, moving to the side at the last minute, slipping to the left a bit and hitting them from the side.

Some of the ARCs flew over top the lasers and swooped down over it and slipped in between the giant guns, causing them to shoot and destroy one another.

But other ARCs couldn't do as their squadmates could and ended up getting ripped apart by the enemy fire.

Agen and the Y-wings flew right to the middle of the coreship, avoiding both the ARCs and turbolasers. They reached the sphere in the middle of the ship and Agen, along with the Y-wings, released their proton torpedoes and watched them sail away to the coreship.

"There away!" one pilot yelled.

Agen and the Y-wings banked away sharply once they saw the explosives reach their destination. Orange flames began to rip through the battleship, as if consuming it internally.

The ARCs got the message and flew away as well, leaving some vulnerable to the turbolaser fire from behind before the explosion engulfed the whole ship.

"Blue group, form up. How many did we lose?" Agen asked once they were clear from the debris of the battleship.

One of the clone pilots responded. "About…seven, sir. Not a bad loss. It could have been worse."

Agen silently nodded. Seven wasn't bad. But as a Jedi Master, he shouldn't be comfortable with the loss of _any_ lives.

"Let's see if General Tiin needs any assistance…"

"I can't shake them!"

The panicked voice of the clone pilot was abruptly cut off as his starfighter exploded in a giant ball of flame.

General Tiin swung wide against another swarm of Vultures, spinning around and firing at more incoming fighters. He was able to destroy two more before having to slip down to avoid an incoming fiery ARC.

Saesee's group was down ten fighters, compared to the Separatists losing fifteen, seven of which were destroyed by Saesee himself. The Separatists still outnumbered the Republic by at least a dozen. He liked those odds.

"Need a hand, old friend?" Agen said, flying straight into the swarm of starfighters, shooting a couple down before having to dive away from enemy fire.

Saesee followed the manuever and pulled his fighter up alongside Agen's. "Always got my back, don't ya?"

Agen flipped his starfighter upside down to avoid another Vulture. "Always."

"Let's finish this!" It was the battle cry of an anonymous clone pilot, but Saesee agreed. He activated his laser cannons, clipping one of the starfighters. He watched it careen right into another one.

Saesee and Agen were both deep in the Force now, their only purpose being to avoid the laser cannons of the droid starfighters. One by one, the droid fighters fell to the combined forces of the two Jedi and their clone troopers.

With Agen's forces combined with Saesee's, they were now able to overwhelm the Vultures with precision shooting and quick maneuvering. Even the clones seemed to become more accurate and quicker with both Jedi working together to defeat the Vulture droids.

Soon enough, all of the droid starfighters were either destroyed or too badly damaged to be of any threat. Saesee contacted the _Impavid_. "Green One to _Impavid, _we have taken out the surrounding starfighters and you are clear to target the Hardcells."

"Copy that, Green One. We are proceeding."

Saesee turned the _Sharp Spiral _over and led the remaining starfighters, and Agen, to one of the three Hardcells patrolling the planet.

The three interstellar transports were spread out evenly across the planet, away from where the droid control ship had been. Hardcell transports were lightly armed, and the _Impavid _would be able to handle two of them while the starfighters took care of the third one.

Seeing the huge number of Republic ships entering the area, the Hardcells went on the defensive. Clearly, they were going to hold back and wait for the starfighters to arrive.

_These Separatists must be crazy_. Saesee grinned as his starfighter dodged the light laser blasts that the Hardcell produced, and shot at the Hardcell's exterior. But no explosion occurred. Something stopped his attack.

"Their shields are up!" Saesee said into the comm, alarm creeping into his voice.

"Not for long," answered Agen. Finding the small shield generator on the Hardcell, he launched three missiles at it. He couldn't make out the extent of the damage through the initial smoke and flames that spewed, but it was enough that the shields fell. He, along with the rest of the fighters, would now be able to swarm over the Hardcell like scavengers over a recently-deceased corpse.

The ARCs were shooting everything in their sights. With all of the Separatist droid starfighters gone, the Hardcell had little to defend itself from.

Eventually, the laser cannons from all the starfighters were enough to crack a breach in the hull and cause all the material held inside to be blown into space, which wasn't as much as Saesee thought. It seemed like only a skeleton crew of droids were onboard.

Continuing to fire at the ship, one lucky ARC clone pilot hit what appeared to be right above the fuel cells of the ship, causing the whole thing to explode on impact. One down, two to go.

But when Saesee looked over to where the other two Hardcell transports were suppose to be at, only one remained, the other one was already destroyed by the _Impavid, _its parts thrown about by the explosion fuel cells.

"We should assist our friends," Agen said, and swung his ETA-2 over to the star destroyer to reinforce it.

By the time he was half way there, the _Impavid _had already sent it's large turbolaser and ion cannons lancing into the smaller, weaker vessel, slicing past it's small insignificant shields like butter.

"Or not…" Agen said, after seeing the explosion.

Back onboard the _Impavid, _Saesee Tiin and Agen Kolar were communicating with the other Jedi sent on the mission, Miran Manten and Voolvif Monn, by holographic communications with another one of the Venators.

Agen had just recently worked with Voolvif Monn, along with the Twi'lek Aayla Secura, on an ice-covered world which he could no longer clearly remember. Well, aside from the fact that they had been quickly taken over by crab droids and only escaped due to the effects of Anakin Skywalker.

He had spoken highly to the Council about what Voolvif Monn had done on that world, in the hopes that they would be able to work together again on a mission.

"It was too easy," Agen said. Saesee nodded in agreement. "They must be holding up all their ships for Sullust. Somebody knew that we were coming."

Miran spoke up. "If there are more ships at Sullust than here, we must continue with."

Agen didn't know Miran Manten very well. As a Zeltron, she was, of course, beautiful like the majority of her species. But something seemed different about her. Something that Agen could not place…

"No, Miran, that will not be necessary. I want you and Voolvif to remain here at Agomar, in case somebody else attacks the planet," Saesee said to the holograms.

Agen nodded. "Yes, it is your best interest to stay here. This mission is highly dangerous. Plus, you might have to deal with any remaining droids on the ground. So that should give you something to do while we go on our mission."

Both Voolvif and Miran seemed to agree. They didn't want to risk their lives if they didn't need to. They would protect Agomar with the Venator star destroyer they were stationed on, and that was that.

"Good luck, Master Jedi," Miran said.

"And may the Force be with you," Voolvif finished for Miran.

With a _click, _Agen turned off the holo-projector. "Commander, alert all ships except the _Freedom_ to ready for departure."


End file.
